There are few modern Canadian painters whose work has captured our collective imagination to the extent that Alex Colville’s has. Born in 1920, Colville served as a Canadian war artist in the Second World War and taught Fine Arts at Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB, before embarking on a career as a full-time artist. His paintings, often described in terms of magic realism, have found an international following. In celebration of Colville’s ninetieth birthday in 2010, Gaspereau Press commissioned essays on Colville’s life and work from four contributors–two German and two Canadian. The resulting collection provides an intimate and thought-provoking reflection on both the artist and his work.